Nielsen: Most Americans Choose Smartphones; Apple Grows Fastest

For the first time, according to Nielsen, the majority of American phone-buyers (55 percent) reported buying a smartphone, up from 34 percent last year. The majority of U.S. phones are still the ironically-titled “feature” phones, which offer far fewer features, but the fact that we’ve reached this tipping point is good news for anyone who already has a smartphone. It will lead to more choice in apps — and better apps — as developers sell to a bigger market.

Android still comprises the majority of new smartphone buyers, which would be a good sign for Google, except that its growth is flattening as Apple’s increases. And that is happening even though Apple hasn’t introduced a new model since the iPhone 4, which debuted a year and a day ago.

As the chart shows, Apple’s wedge of the chart continues to grow, as Android’s remains flat, even though Android’s 27-percent share beats Apple’s 17 percent by a decent margin. But despite Android’s lead in that area, the app developers we watch still consistently develop for iPhone first, then Android.